Box-fastener



No. 593,615. Patented NOVu 16,1897.

and disengage the box.

- UNITED .STATES PATENT ilfnnicn.

HENRY M. SHEER ANDSANFORD C. PITNEY, OF QUINCY, ILLINOIS.

Box-FASTENER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No: 593,615, dated November 16, 1897. Application filed January 4, 1897. Serial No. 617,965. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that we, HENRY M. SHEER and SANFORD O. PITNEY, citizens of the United States, residing at Quincy, in the-county of Adams and State of Illinois, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Box- Lid Fasteners; and 'We do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as-will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertainsto make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the tigures of reference marked thereon,wl1ich form a part of this specification.

Heretofore it has been common to provide box-lids with a fastening device consisting of a pair of vrods movable endwise in opposite directions to engage the opposite walls of the box-body, the inner ends of the rods being attached to the opposite ends of a pivoted le- Ver in'such a manner that when the bar is turned to the right or left it will cause the ends to move endwise and alternately engage The object of our invention is to improve upon devices of this character whereby our device will be more cheap, convenient, and desirable in both manufacture and use.

To this end our invention consists in the peculiar features and combinations of parts more fully described hereinafter and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a top view of our device as applied to .the cover of an ordinary box, the parts being shown in locking position and dotted lines representing them turned into unlocking position.. Fig. 2 represents a side elevation of our complete device.

The reference-numeral 1 represents an ordinary box, and 2 the lid thereof, arranged and adapted to fit within it.

3 denotes a pair of transversestrips naile across the opposite ends of the top of the lid.

el represents a horizontally-disposed lever mounted on the pivot 5, rising perpendicu-4 larly from the plate 6. By horizontally is meant movable in the plane of the top of the lid. This plate is fastened to thetop ofthe 5o lid by means of screws 7, having countersunk heads.

The lever 4, which forms one of the princitached to the trunnions 11.

pal features of our invention, is provided with a pair of holes 4', located ou the opposite sides of the pivot and out of alinement with a line drawn through the longitudinal center of the lever. Y

9 9 represent the locking-rods, having their outer extremities pointed and passing through guide-holes lO in the strips 3 on the top of the lid, so that they will engage the inside walls of the box. The ends 9' of the rods are hook-shaped to hook into the holes 4 of the lever, whereby the rods can be attached and detached by simply hooking and unhooking them'wthout other preparation. The oppo'- site extremities of the lever 4 are provided with longitudinally-extending trunnions 1l for the reception of loops 12 on the manipulating bail or handle 13. This handle is made of a single piece of wire having sufficient resiliency to enable its looped ends to spread apart far enough to be removedV from or at- Shoulders 14. opposite the holes 4 are formed on each end of the lever for the purpose of locking it against the sides of the hooked ends of the rods 9 when the opposite ends of thelever have passed the dead-center into locking position. The construction of thehandle allows it to swing laterally on thev lever and fold down on the lid o-ut of -the way when not in use and to be lifted up into position for turning the lever,

the combined handle, lever, and stud being substantially like a swivel.

Thus constructed it will be seen that when thellever, 4 is turned at substantially right angles to the lockingrods,'as seen in dotted lines, the rods will be Withdrawn from engagement with the box and allow the lid to be lifted out, and when it is desired to apply and lock the lid the latter can be dropped down into the boxthe required distance and the handle 13 given a turn :from left to right, thereby spreading the arms away from each other and moving them in an endwise direction to make their points enter the opposite ends of the box. By continuing to turn the lever around to the limit of its locking position one or both 'lugs of the handle will be brought in contact with the side' or sides of the locking-rods simultaneously with the passage of the hooked ends past the dead-center in relation to each other andthe pivot, so

that there will be a tendency, caused by the back pressure of the rods, to hold the lever in its locked position to hold the cover in place.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire fo secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The herein-described locking device for box-lids, said device consisting in the connbination of a centrally-pivoted, horizontal lever having a vertical axis and provided With holes, a pair of longitudinally-lnovable lockin g-rods secured in the holes and out of alinelnent with each other, a pair of lugs projecting from the opposite extremities of the 1ever, and a handle secured to said lugs and adapted to fall down on the top of the lid, substantially as described.

2. In a box-lid fastener, the combination with a lid, of a stud or fulcrum centrally disposed thereon and projecting upwardly therefrom, a horizontally-movable looking-lever having trunnions on its opposite ends and provided with abutting shoulders, a bail having loops tted over and pivoted on the trunnions so as to swing up and down, and a pair of rods pivotally attached to the lever at points between the axis and free ends, the contiguous ends of the rods being arranged to come in contact with the abutting shoulders on the lever when the latter is turned into locking adjustment, substantially as dcscribed.

3. The combination with a lid, of the locking-rods 9, the perpendicular stud or pivot 5 on the lid, the lever 4 parallel with the face of the lid and the U-shaped handle 13 hinged on the lever, substantially as described.

In witness whereof we afiix our signatures in presence of two Witnesses.

HENRY M. SHEER. SANFORD C. PITNEY. 'Vitnesses:

A. M. CLARK, W. A. VAN ALsTINE. 

